St Martin the Merciful

Saint Martin the Merciful was distinguished from his youth by compassion and pity for the poor. At twenty, while still unbaptised, the saint began to distribute his property to the destitute, and soon had nothing left but one garment and a knife.

Once, in winter, in bitter cold, he saw a beggar asking for alms at the city gate, but no one gave him anything. Saint Martin’s heart was wrung with pity; he took off his garment and cut it with the knife: half he gave to the beggar, and with the other half he covered his own nakedness. Many laughed at the strangely dressed blessed one, and at night Martin, tormented by the frost, saw the Lord Jesus Christ Himself clothed in the part of his garment that he had given to the beggar. The Saviour pointed out the shreds of the shirt to the angels and said: “Martin, while still unbaptised, clothed Me in this garment; I will clothe him with glory and after death call him into My Kingdom.” On waking, the Lord’s chosen one hastened to the church and was baptised. All his later life he gave alms generously, for which the Lord granted him the gift of wonderworking.